Whitley County, Indiana - The whole text, 1907 (part 16 of 28)

Joseph R. Harrison

Joseph R. Harrison, mayor of Columbia City and one of the leading public men of northeastern Indiana, is a native of Noble county, this state, and the oldest son of James M. and Mary J. ( Richards) Harrison, whose family history appears elsewhere in this volume. Mr. Harrison was born on a farm in Green township, of the above county. May 28, 1862, and in his veins flows the blood of a long line of Scotch. Irish and English ancestors, combining in his physical, mental and moral fibre many of the sterling qualities and characteristics by which these sturdy nationalities have long been distinguished. The subject's early educational advantages were such as the public schools afforded. The training thus received was afterward supplemented by a high-school course in the town of Churubusco. where he made such a rapid progress that at the age of fifteen he was sufficiently advanced to pass successfully the required examination and obtain a teacher's license. After spending a couple of years in educational work he became deputy clerk of the Whitley county court, entering upon tlie duties of the position in 1879 and discharging the same with credit to himself and to the satisfaction of the public for a period of eight years, during which time he acquitted himself with commendable fidelity and won an abiding place in the confidence and esteem of his fellow citizens. Retiring from the office at the expiration of his term of service in 1888, he was made deputy clerk of the fourth district of New Mexico under President Cleveland's first administration, with his office at Los Vegas, in Vhich capacity he displayed ability of a high order until the end of the time for which appointed, when he returned to Columbia City, where since 1891 he has been interested in mercantile pursuits, besides taking an active and meritorious part in promoting all laudable enterprises for the public good. In 1902 Mr. Harrison was elected mayor of Columbia City and has held the position by successive re-elections ever since, his present term expiring January 1, 1910. The honorable distinction acquired in the various lines of endeavor to which he had previously directed attention, has been heightened by the creditable record earned as the city's chief executive, an office requiring the exercise of strong mentality, sound and discret judgment, in view of the fact that the prosperity of the municipality and the general good of the people depend very largely upon judicious counsel and firm leadership. Faithful to the trust confided to him and loyal to the best interests of the people, he makes every other consideration subordinate to duty and directs his conduct so as to retain the warm place he occupies in the esteem and confidence of his fellowmen. A Democrat of the Jeffersonian school and loyal to the principles of the same, he resorts to none of the wiles and practices of the professional partisan, conducting his canvasses in an open, honorable manner that not only carries the strength of his own party, but wins a considerable following from the opposition. He served two terms as member of the local school board, elected both times by a Republican council, and while holding this important position he was untiring in his efforts to promote the city's educational interests and to him, as much perhaps as any other man. is due the high standard of excellence which the schools of Columbia City have attained. In 1906 Mr. Harrison was one of the most prominent candidates of his party for congress before the convention, but withdrew his name for personal reasons, when his nomination was almost assured. He has long been a power in political circles, his counsel being eagerly sought and his co-operation earnestly solicited in every campaign in which important principles are involved, his advice and influence having much weight in selecting candidates and formulating policies. At the breaking out of the Spanish-American war Mr. Harrison was one of the first men in Whitley county to tender his services to the government. In May, 1895, he organized Company G, Fourth Indiana Infantry, and May 15, 1898, was mustered into service as captain of Company G. One Hundred Sixtieth Indiana Volunteers, which command he accompanied to Cuba, where he shared with his comrades the fortunes and vicissitudes incident to active warfare under conditions bv no means the most favorable. Returning home at the cessation of hostilities, he resumed the quiet pursuits of civil life, yet retained his interest in military affairs, reorganizing in 1899, Company G, in the Indiana National Guard, and holding at the present time the position of major in the Third InfaTitry. He is well versed in military science, keeps in close touch with the historv and movements of the armies of the world and holds membership with the

United States Military Association and the Military Order of Foreign Wars. Mr. Harrison is a Scottish Rite Mason, in addition to which he has been active in the various other branches of the fraternity to which he belongs. He is also a member of the Pythian order, the Modern Woodmen of America, the Knights of the Maccabees, in all of which he has attained standing, besides being honored with important official positions.

The domestic chapter in the life of Mr. Harrison dates from February 10, 1881, at which time he was united in marriage with Miss Jennie E. S tough, of Whitley county, whose birth occurred in Columbia City on October 28. i860. Mrs. Harrison, who was the daughter of Lieutenant-Colonel George W. Stough and Eleanor M. Stough. bore her husband four children: George R.. a student at the West Point Military Academy, will graduate in 1907; Hazel E., attending college at Roanoke, Virginia ; Ray P. and Ruth M., the last two pursuing their studies in the public schools of Columbia City.

Mrs. Harrison died June 7, 1905, and was buried at Columbia City in the Masonic cemetery. Mr. Harrison has been presiding officer of all the branches of Masonry except the Scottish Rite.

Rev. Anthony M. Ellering

Pastor of St. Paul's church, Columbia City, was bom in the province of Westphalia. Prussia. March 18. 1854, the first of a family of seven children born to Gerhard and Mary Ann (Esseling) Ellering.

Gerhard Ellering attended the parochial school of his native village of Epe until he attained the age of fifteen aand was then employed in farming. He was married in Epe, in 1852, by Father Bernard Lammers, and this union was blessed with seven children, who were named in order of birth as follows: Anthony M., Hemy, Bernard, Catharina, George, Joseph and Clement, all living in Minnesota, with the exception of the Rev. Anthony M. and the sister who remains in the Fatherland. August 22, 1868, the family landed in New York city, whence they went directly to Meire's Grove, Stearns county, Minnesota, where the father purchased a farm, which he cultivated until his death in 1884, his wife having died the previous year.

Anthony M. was primarily educated in a parochial school of his native village of Epe, Westphalia ; then, after his first holy communion, he attended for two years a private Latin school, leaving at the age of fourteen to accompany the family to America. From 1874 until 1878 he attended the university at Collegeville, Minn., from which he was graduated after finishing his classical studies. From 1878 until 1880 he attended Calvary College, Fond du Lac county, Wisconsin, from which he graduated in philosophy, and from 1880 until 1884 attended St. Francis Seminary at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he finished his theological course. He was then invested with minor orders - sub-deacon and deacon - in the seminary chapel by the late Most Rev. Archbishop Heiss, and was ordained priest at the Fort Wayne find.) cathedral by the late Right Rev. Bishop Dwenger, June II, 1884. He then returned to the home of his parents in Minnesota, and said his first mass on St. John's day, June 24, 1884. He was appointed assistant pastor at Michigan City, Indiana, the same year and later in charge of the missions at Warsaw, Pierceton and Bourbon, with his residence at Fort Wayne, and May 1, 1886, was appointed to the pastorate of St. Paul's, Columbia City, still having charge of the Warsaw mission. Since he has had charge of St. Paul's parish he has erected a new school-house, made other improvements and paid debts all amounting' to about $15,000.

Father Ellering takes deep interest in all movements for the general advancement of the community and in his association with the citizens has made many warm friends who may not always agree with him on theological questions but who recognize in him a genial, courteous gentleman whose every act makes for more exalted citizenship, purer morals and cleaner living.

Holding distinctive prestige among the representative business men of northern Indiana, and for a number of years an influential force in moulding and directing the financial interests of Whitley county, Henry McLallen, president of the First National Bank of Columbia City, is entitled to specific mention as one of the notable men of his day and generation in the state honored by his citizenship. Although a native of New York and inheriting to a marked degree the sterling qualities of a long line of sturdy Scotch ancestors that early became identi- fied with the Empire state, he is in the truest sense of the term a western man, coming to Indiana in his childhood, from which time to the present his life has been very closely interwoven with the development and progress of his adopted commonwealth. The McLallen family history is traceable to a very early period in Scotland and in the mediaeval annals of that country the name is identical with McLellan. or "Clan Mac," which appears to have originated in Ayrshire, the birthplace of the poet Burns, and which under the leadership of the Campbells achieved distinction for bravery during the long and troublous period in the Highlands where heads of various clans were arraigned against each other in bloody and almost continuous struggle. The branch of the family to which the subject belongs traces its descent from one of two brothers who came to America from the city of Ayr early in the seventeenth century and settled in Connecticut, with the history of which colony the name became closely associated. Later the leading representative of the family located at West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, from which place his descendants emigrated in about 1776, to East Menden. Monroe county, New York, and thence spread over various parts of the central western and southern states, in certain localities of which the name is still familiar and in the main distinguished for sterling integrity, persevering industry7 and business ability of a high order. That this numerous and hardy branch of the "Clan Mac" is by no means to be classed among the "race suicides" is attested by the fact that Henry McLallen. the subject's father, reared a family of twelve children, while his grandfather and great-grandfather were the parents of thirteen children each, thus literally carrying out the scriptural injunction "to multiply and replenish the earth." Following the course of empire westward, the scions of this old and highly esteemed family are now represented in nearly every state and territory of the Union, and, as indicated above, they have ever pursued the straightforward course and added new luster to a reputation which from a remote period in the dim past has been synonymous with personal daring, unimpeachable rectitude, courageous achievement and a high standard of moral excellence in various fields of endeavor. Henry McLallen, Sr., father of the subject, was born in Trumansburg, New York, on August 3, 1808, and there grew to maturity and began his business career shortly after attaining his majority. He was married in his native place, August 31, 183 1. to Miss Frances Lyman, of Northfield, Massachusetts, a descendant of one of the English families of the old Bay state and a lady of manyr estimable traits of character, not a few of which have been reproduced in the lives of her numerous descendants. Mr. Mc- Lallen met with reasonable success in his business enterprise until the great panic of 1843 when, in common with so many in every line of trade, he encountered serious financial embarrassment by reason of his inability to collect from his debtors, the majority of whom, like himself, went down in the general catastrophe. With no hope of re-establishing himself without waiting a long period of years and being attracted by the advantages of the great west, which had been given wide publicity, he finally decided to cut loose from his moorings and try his fortune in this country of alluring promise and boundless opportunity. All who are familiar with the history and development of the western states will easily recall the wonderful impetus given emigration to Ohio, Michigan and Indiana by the construction of various great avenues of travel, notably the National road, the Ohio canal and the Wabash and Erie canal, which to a greater extent perhaps than any other means of communication contributed to the settlement and improvement of those states and. to the proud positions they subsequently assumed among their sister commonwealths of the Union, while in process of building, however these and other schemes for the internal improvement of the country were greatly hindered and some of them effectually checked by the revulsion resulting" from the overthrow of the National Bank by President Jackson, and the stringency in financial circles which followed caused widespread embarrassment and ruin to the business interests of the people in general. It was under the inspiration of high expectations as to the rapid development of the west that Mr. McLallen, with many others, came to Indiana in 1844, and, accompanied by his brother, DeWitt McLallen, and Harper Mack, he settled in the spring of that year in Richland township, Whitley county, where he cleared about an acre of ground and erected a log cabin for the reception of his family, by whom he was joined in this home the following September. Mr. Mc- Lallen located on section 3, adjoining the village of Larwill. and at once addressed himself t<> the formidable task of removing the flense forest growth and reducing the soil to cultivation, a kind of labor for which he was by no means fitted, being of slight physique, while his previous experience had been almost entirely in the line of sedentary occupation. With the courage and self-sacrifice worthy of a martyr, however, he attacked the huge forest monarchs, which one by one fell before the blows of his deftly wielded ax. and by long and tremendous exertion, which continued through a number of years, his efforts were finally crowned with well merited success and he enjoyed the satisfaction of seeing his family well sheltered in a comfortable home and amply provided for from the productions of the farm, which he, practically unaided, carved from the primitive wilderness. Unlike the majority of pioneers, Mr. McLallen was a man of refined tastes and scholarly attainments, a great reader of the world's best literature, but his experience as a woodsman and frontier farmer in an isolated community, far removed from the influences of cultured society, proved sadly detrimental to intellectual effort and made his situation somewhat difficult to endure. Courageous and cheerful, however, he and his family resolutely encountered the many difficulties by which they were beset ; with an abiding faith in their ability to overcome an unfavorable environment they faced the future with hope and by keeping the fire of domestic happiness brightly burning, established a home which, as years came and went with their accompaniments of sickness and other discouragements, never lost its ideal character nor parted with those charms which in many respects made it a model of its kind and the center from which radiated so many refined and elevating influences. Possessing the happy faculty of adapting himself to his surroundings, Mr. McLallen was not long in winning many warm friends and but for his retiring disposition and distaste for publicity he might easily have had any official position within the gift of the people of the county. He lived where he originally settled until 1858, when he disposed of the homestead and from that time to his death, on October 30, 1875, spent his days quietly among- his children, finding his chief delight in his garden and orchard, to which he had always been devoted, and among the books with which his library was plentifully stored. He was a man of fine mind, large sympathies, and he stamped the impress of his individuality upon the community which he assisted to establish and in which for so man}- years he exercised a strong influence for all that made for the social advancement and moral good of his fellow citizens.

Henry McLallen. Jr.. like his father, hails from the state of New York and dates his birth from August 2, 1841, having first seen the light of day in the town of Trumansburg-, where the family had long resided. A\ 'hen three years old he was brought to Indiana by his parents, since which time his life has been closely identified with the material progress of Whitley county, and the welfare of its populace, and it may with propriety be said that for nearly a half century the story of his career and the history of the city in which he resides have been pretty much one and the same thing. During the years of his childhood and youth he attended the schools of the neighborhood, later received a thorough mental training under the direction of private instructors and by gratifying a strong natural desire for the acquisition of knowledge, he became in due time a widely read and deeply informed young man, not only in general literature, but his acquaintance with the leading public questions and political issues of the day, as well as with other lines of thought no less important, was also varied and profound. Having decided upon a business career as best suited to his tastes and inclinations, Mr. McLallen began preparing for the same by entering the Eastman Business College, at Indianapolis, Indiana, where he prosecuted his studies until completing the prescribed course, following which he became an employe of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad, spending the interval between i860 and 1870 in the line of service at the town of Larwill. In the latter year he was elected treasurer of Whitley count)' and so faithfully and efficiently did he discharge his duties as custodian of one of the people's most important trusts, that at the expiration of his term he was triumphantly re-elected, holding the office for a period of four years, during which time he earned an honorable reputation as a capable, painstaking- and courteous public servant. In 1874 Mr. McLallen turned his attention to the business with which he has since been identified and in which his name has become widely and favorably known in financial circles, not only in his own county, but throughout the entire state of Indiana and elsewhere. In that year he became a member of the firm of E. L. McLallen & Company, in the organization of the Farmers' Bank of Columbia City, one of the most substantial and popular institutions of the kind in northern Indiana, as its history and success abundantly attest. After doing business under the orig-inal name until 1904, it was changed to that of the First National Bank of Columbia City and as such it has continued to grow in public favor, being ably managed by men of large financial experience, whose conservative, though progressive methods have inspired confidence and gained a wide and liberal patronage second in volume to that of no other banking- firm in this part of the state.

The domestic chapter in the history of Mr. McLallen's life dates from 1864. on June 7th of which year he was united in marriage with Miss Lavinia Catherine Clugston, a native of New Castle, Delaware, who bore him four children: Elisha L., Walter F., Henry Dewitt and Marshall C, the last named deceased, the three living sons being identified with their father in the banking business and holding important official positions in the same. The mother of these children departed this life on April 14, 1880. and subsequently, December 29, 1883, Mr. McLallen was married a second time, choosing for his wife and helpmeet Miss Catherine Dee, of Cincinnati, Ohio. Mr. McLallen, was initiated into the mysteries of the Masonic fraternity in 1863 at Larwill, this county, joining Guard Lodge No. 278, though in 1872 he broug-ht his membership to Columbia City Lodge No. 189. and since that time has been an esteemed member of the order, manifesting' an abiding' interest in its prosperity and exemplifying by his daily life the beautiful and sublime principles upon' which the brotherhood is founded. He is also a member of Chapter Xo. 54, Royal Arch Masons; Council Xo. 55, Royal and Select Masons,' and Cyrene Commander}' Xo. 34, Knights Templar. In religion the Lutheran church holds his creed, nevertheless he is by no means narrow in his theological views, but possesses a broad, liberal spirit that perceives good in all churches and recognizes in every person, however lowly, a divine origin and an immortal destiny. For a number of years himself and family have belonged to Grace church of Columbia City, to the material support of which he has been a liberal contributor, besides being chosen to official position by the congregation from time to time, holding at this time the office of trustee. He is not < inly deeply interested in church and general religious work, but all lines of laudable endeavor, social, charitable, moral and educational receive his cordial co-operation and support. Mr. McLallen is public-spirited in all the term implies and for many years has used his influence and efforts to the upbuilding of his city and county and to the advertising of their advantages abroad. Naturally a leader of men and to no small degree a moulder of opinion, he is perhaps as widely known as any man in northern Indiana, and in Whitley county no other public character has impressed his personality so strongly upon the minds and hearts of his fellow citizens. As a financier and business man he ranks among- the foremost in the state and as an executive head of the institution, which has been such a powerful agency in promoting the business interests of both city and country, he discharges his duties and responsibilities with an industry and ability such as few of his compeers have attained. The universal love, admiration and esteem in which Mr. McLallen is held by the people of the community and wherever he is known, evince their high appreciation of the public and private worth and excellence of his character, and when his work has been accomplished and his mission ended this will doubtless prove the most enduring monument by which his name and virtues are to be perpetuated.

Jesse A. Glassley

Prominent in the public affairs of Whitley county and enjoying distinction in business circles. Jesse A. Glassley stands out a conspicuous figure among the successful selfmade men in the county and state, honored by his citizenship. Characterized by a strong individuality, his career represents the result of fit utilization of innate talent in directing effort. He has been actively identified with this part of Indiana all his life, contributing to its material progress and prosperity, at the same time lending his influence and means to the generous support of all enterprises having for their object the social and moral advancement of his city and county and the general welfare of the public. His is the record of an honorable and essentially busy and useful life, consistent with itself and its possibilities and abounding in much to encourage the youth whose destiny is still a matter of the future.

The Glassley family came to this country either from Ireland or Scotland and settled in Lancaster count}', Pennsylvania. John Glassley, grandfather of Jesse, was about six years old when brought to the new world. He grew to manhood, married, and spent the residue of his days in Pennsylvania, dying on the family homestead at the ripe age of eighty-four, his wife, Elizabeth, reaching the same age. John Glasslev, Jr., is the eldest of a family of eight children, and was born in 1830, in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. He early learned the weaver's trade, which he followed in Pennsvlvania until 1862. when he came to Indiana and clerked in a store in South Whitley. After about seven years he returned to Pennsylvania and became foreman in a large weaving factory in the city of Lancaster, but three years later resigned and came back to South Whitley and. erecting a shop, became a manufacturer of coverlids, counterpanes and carpets. In connection with his factory he also opened a grocery, to which he later devoted his entire attention, turning his other business over to his eldest son. who was also a practical weaver and under whose management the establishment became quite important. Mr. Glassley purchased property which, increasing in value with the growth of the town, in due time made him independent. Since 1903 he has been living in retirement at the old home in South Whitley, having reached the age of seventy-six years. He was trustee of Cleveland township for over five vears, represented his ward in the city council from time to time and in various other capacities proved himself a capable official and public-spirited man. Fraternally he is identified with the brotherhood of Odd Pellows, religiously subscribes to the Methodist creed and for many years has been a zealous supporter 'of the Republican party. Mrs. Glassley. at the age of sixty-eight, is one of the highly esteemed and popular old ladies of the community. The children born to John and Sarah (Winters) Glassley are: William W.. assistant postmaster of South Whitley; Elias. deceased : David, deceased : Tesse A. ;

Jesse A. Glassley was born in South -Whitley, September 24, 1863, and attended school the greater part of each year, the rest of the time assisting his parents. He served a three-years' apprenticeship at the harnessmaker's trade, but on mastering it, he turned his attention to other lines. He was a clerk with a dry goods firm of South Whitley until 1904. Meanwhile he became interested in political affairs and achieved some popularity and influence in the councils of his party. Mr. Glassley, in 1902, was elected clerk of the Whitley county circuit court, to the duties of which position he has, since 1904, devoted his entire time and attention, proving a capable and judicious official, courteous in his relations with the public. Mr. Glassley is a type of the progressive, successful American and his career presents a series of advancements commendable alike to himself and to the public. Broad minded and liberal in his view of men, there is nothingnarrow in his make-up and thus far his life has measured up to the high standard of excellence which indicates the courteous gentleman and the honorable wide-awake citizen who makes every other consideration subordinate to duty and who ever strives to do the right as he sees and understands it. In manner he is pleasant and affable, with sympathies that express themselves in kindly deeds to others. Socially he possesses an attractive personality, being companionable and genial, and assists to the limits of his ability all measures and enterprises tending to promote the material, social, and moral welfare 1 if the community.

marriage relation with Miss Myrta E. Hoard, a native of Whitley county, and a lady of many estimable qualities of mind and heart, as is attested by the large circle of friends that held her in high esteem and affectionate regard. Mrs. Glassley's parents were natives of Ohio, the father having" served throughout the war of the Rebellion in one of the regiments from that state. They came to Whitley county a number of years ago and here spent the remainder of their lives. Mr. and Mrs. Glassley established a pleasant and hospitable home which has been brightened by the presence of four children : Ray H., being his father's official deputy; John A.; Sarah F., and Offie K. The mother departed this life in 1901, deeply lamented by all who knew her or came within range of her influence. She was a loving wife, an affectionate and devoted mother, and a zealous Christian, having been a faith; ful and respected member of the Methodist Episcopal chuch of South Whitley and greatly interested in all lines of good work under the auspices of the same. Mr. Glassley is a Mason of good standing and is also identified with the Odd Fellows fraternity and the Order of Modern Woodmen.

Levi M. Meiser

As the name indicates, Levi M. Meiser is descended from German ancestry and traces his family lineage back to an early period in the history of Pennsylvania, where John Meiser, his great-grandfather, settled over two hundred years ago. It is a fact worthy of note that the farm which this ancestor secured has always been held by some mem- ber of the family, being now owned by one John Meiser, a relative, who takes pardonable pride in its possession, as well as in the honorable name of the various antecedents by whom it has been occupied. John Meiser, Sr., was a splendid type of the early German immigrant and by a life of industry, economy and judicious management developed a good farm and became one of the weli-to-do and substantial men of his community. His son, John Meiser, left Pennsylvania in the last century and settled in Stark county, Ohio, with the pioneer history of which he was actively identified. He entered a tract of land, which he cleared and otherwise improved, and on which he spent the remainder of his life as an honest, upright and praiseworthy citizen, dying' at the ripe age of eighty-three. His widow subsequently came with other members of the family to Indiana and died at the home of her son. Benjamin Meiser, after reaching the advanced age of ninety-one years. Of the children born to this estimable couple, Eli Meiser was the youngest. He was born in Starke county. Ohio, and there continued to reside until 1848. when he moved to Whitley county, Indiana, and opened a general store in Columbia City, having previously had experience in that line in Ohio. He was successful in business, accumulated a handsome competence and conducted his mercantile interests until his death, in 1856. Harriet Sausser. wife of Eli Meiser and mother of the subject of this review, was a native of Ohio and of German lineage, both her parents having come from the old world. Her four children were Cynthia J., who married D. L. Worth, a merchant of Columbia City: Nathaniel C. a mechanic of the

Levi M. Meiser was born in Columbia City, November 27, 1852. Much of character and success in life depends upon the right kjnd of parentage, in which respect he was peculiarly blessed. In childhood there were implanted in his mind and heart the principles of rectitude and honor which in the course of time crystalized into sturdy moral fibre that grew with his growth and developed well defined purposes as he advanced towards manhood's estate. Mr. Meiser began his business life at the age of thirteen as clerk in a general store and continued in that capacity until his twenty-first year, when he became associated with David L. Worth in the tailoring and general clothing trade. This partnership lasted about ten years when, meeting with financial reverses during the panic of 1878, it was dissolved. Mr. Meiser was then engaged in various commercial enterprises, in connection with which he also dealt cpiite extensively in Kansas real estate during the boom in that state. He continued his business affairs in Columbia City until 1902. He was elected recorder of Whitley county, which office he has since held and in the management of which he has earned an honorable reputation as a capable and obliging public servant.

Mr. Meiser was married October 31. 1900, to Miss Alice Souder, of Noble countv, Indiana, whose father and mother were respectively of German and Irish descent, the union resulting in the birth of one child, Robert DeWitt. Fraternally Mr. Meiser is a member of the Masonic and Pythian brotherhoods and. with his wife, belongs to the Evangelical Lutheran church. Mrs. Meiser is an active worker in the Order of the Eastern Star and the Rathbone Sisters. in both of which she is influential and highly esteemed. Mr. Meiser is staunchly Republican in politics, but has many warm firends in the party of the opposition, as is attested by his election to the office he now holds by a majority of one hundred and sixty-two in a county normally Democratic bv a very strong vote. He is an accomplished politician and enjoys the reputation of being the best vote winner in the county, his great personal popularity having much to do in attracting to him his large and enthusiastic following. He conducts his office on strict business principles, looks carefully after the interests of the public, and it is not too much to say that Whitley county has never enjoyed the services of a more faithful, competent and courteous official.

Henry DeWitt McLallen, vice-president of the First National Bank of Columbia City and one of the leading business men of m >rtheastern Indiana, is a native of Whitley county and the son of Henry and Lavinia Mc- Lallen. whose family historj appears elsewhere in this volume. He was born January 3, 1870, in the town of Larwill and after receiving a preliminary education in the public schools, entered the Columbia City high school, from which he was graduated in [887, this training being afterward supplemented by a special course in the Indiana State University. Mr. McLallen began his business career in Chicago about 1890 with the firm of H. W. Caldwell & Sons Company, machinery manufacturers, and three years later removed to Velasco, Texas, where he spent one year in the interest of the firm, installing a large cotton-seed oil plant. The succeeding year he spent at various points in Central America, buying ginger root and crude rubber and in 1895 returned to the United States to become an active member of the firm of E. L. Mc- Lallen & Company in the management of the Farmers Bank of Columbia City, since re-organized as the First National Bank, with which he has since been identified and to the success of which he has verv materially contributed. As vice-president and director of this institution Mr. McLallen has earned more than local repute as a capable financier, whose views on monetary matters carry weight and inspire confidence. He is also connected with various enterprises that contribute to the business interests and material prosperity of his city and county, being a director and one of the organizers of the Provident Trust Company and the Mc- Nown Manufacturing Company, and a director in the Whitley County Building and Loan Association, in addition to the duties and responsibilities of which he finds time to devote to various interests of his own in other lines. Mr. McLallen springs from a long line of ancestors who for generations have been prominent in the business world as merchants, bankers and practical men of affairs and be combines many of the sterling qualities for which his family has long been distinguished, possessing rare business tact and executive ability of a high order, besides taking an influential part in matters and questions involving the public welfare and the advancement of the community along all lines of activity. He is an enthusiastic Free Mason, a member of the York and Scottish Rite bodies, including Cyrene Commanderv. No. 34, Knights Templar, and has held important official positions in all the local branches of the order to which he belongs. In politics he is an active worker in the Democratic party and a valuable adviser in its counsels, but has never .sought nor accepted 'office at the hands of his fellow citizens, having neither taste nor inclination for public preferment. He is a member of Grace English Lutheran church. He - is possessed of a broad mind, a liberal spirit and generous nature, while his frank, genial disposition renders him the life of all social or business circles in which he moves. He is well known as one of those who "do things." when an emergency arises or occasion requires, and whose integrity is unquestioned.

Mr. McLallen was married September 2. 1896, to Miss Mabel Liggett, a daughter of William H. and Rebecca (Mills) Liggett. whose birth occurred in Columbia City on September 6, 1871, the union being blessed with four children, namely: Walter F., deceased ; Rebecca Catherine ; DeWitt Liggett and Richard Vardell.

Andrew A. Adams

Andrew A. Adams, who has achieved success in his profession, was born in \\ hitlev county. January 27, 1864, being the fifth son of John Q. and Christiana (Elliott) Adams, both of whom are now deceased.

He was born on a farm and amid the environments of country life, his earl}- years being spent in the district schools of the neighborhood. This elementary education was supplemented by a course at \\ abash College, at Crawfordsville, where he spent three vears. Later he entered the sophomore class of Washington and Jefferson College, Washington, Pennsylvania. He graduated in June. 1884. receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts, and in 1887, the postgraduate degree of Master of Arts was conferred. He entered upon the study of law under the tutorship of Robertson & Harper, of Fort Wayne, and was admitted to practice m state and federal courts in 1887. and until 1904 was associated with the late Judge James S. Collins. Besides attaining distinction at the bar, he is a clean, companionable gentleman, highly esteemed for his geniality, social standing and his fearlessness and frankness of opinion. \\ ith methods honorable and upright, motives pure and unselfish, backed by clear intelligence and high moral conception, his popularitv is well merited. An ardent Democrat, he has given his party loyal service in local, state and national affairs. Besides his professional interests. Mr. Adams is a stockholder and director in the Columbia City National Bank and the Whitley County Telephone Company. He is president of the People's Free Library, which has clone more than any other single influence to advance the general intelligence of the community. Mr. Adams is a close student, not only of professional literature, but of the world's history and progress, especially of those great social movements that make for the freedom and advancement of mankind. He belongs to the Presbyterian church, in which he was reared, and is a Knight Templar Mason. In 1890 he chose a life companion in the person of Miss Lois Andrew, the daughter of Hon. James M. Andrew, of Louisville, Kentucky. Mr. and Airs. Adams have one son, Robert Andrew, a pupil in the Columbia City high school.

Air. Adams was elected to the legislature in 1888 and in 1890, and served on judiciary and ways and means committee. While his practice is general, he has been remarkably successful in criminal practice.

John O. Adams, deceased, was born in county Tyrone, Ireland, November 26, 1826, and was the youngest son of James Adams, whose ancestors came to the North of, Ireland from Scotland. His mother was Jane Moore, being a member of the family that gave to the world Thomas Moore, the Irish poet. John O. Adams while yet a child came to Xew York with his mother and other members of the family. His mother died shortly afterward and he was taken into the family of his uncle Andrew Adams, of Columbiana county, Ohio. Upon attaining manhood he became an expert machinist and worked for several years in the government ship-yards at New York and Xew Orleans. His health not being equal to the demands of this work, he came with his brother Andrew to Whitley county in 1849 and entered a tract of land near the Noble county line in Thorncreek township. In 1854 he disposed of this land and purchased a farm of three hundred acres six miles northwest of Columbia City, and here spent the remainder of his days with the exception of a period of four years when he lived in Columbia City. In 1852 he was united in marriage with Miss Christiana Elliott, a daughter of George and Elizabeth (McDonald) Elliott, the former of whom was a native of Berwick-on-Tweed, England, and the latter of Inverness, Scotland. A family of six sons was born to Air. and Mrs. Adams : George, who died in 1884, at the age of thirty; John W., who is the editor and proprietor of the Daily and Weekly Post of Columbia City ; Charles, who is a partner in the Adams Lumber Company of Chicago and Tennessee; James M.. who died in 1882, at the age of twenty-one; Andrew A., who is a practicing attorney of Whitley county bar; Frank E., who is associated with his brother Charles in the above mentioned industry. Air. Adams was an enterprising- and public-spirited citizen and served as count)' treasurer from 1866 to 1 87 1. He was one of the active spirits in building the Eel River Railroad, and was for man}- years at the head of the Agriculture Association of this county. Both Air. and and Mrs. Adams were zealous Presbyterians and were charter members of the Presbyterian church at Columbia City, in which Air. Adams was an elder. Politically he was a Democrat, while fraternally he was connected with the Masonic order. He died at the homestead in Thomcreek township, September 23. 1902, and Airs. Adams died at her home in Columbia City, on January 13, 1906. Possessed of distinct and forceful individuality, they left their impress upon the commercial, social and moral development of the community.

Vallorous Brown

country as it was in his young manhood, drawing, too, all his stature and his strength from the virgin prairie and obtaining his eduation in the public school of the primitive period of this region's history, and his force of character and manhood from communion with nature and the discipline of self-reliance to which he was subjected from his childhood, Vallorous Bi'own, of Whitley county, one of the most substantial, influential and highly esteemed citizens of this portion of the state, is essentially in his physical, mental and spiritual make-up a product of the period of simplicity in life and iron seriousness of purpose, as the age of settlement in any country must ever be. He is, therefore, thoroughly imbued with the spirit of the section from which he sprang, and in full sympathy with the tendencies, aspirations and efforts of its people, so far as they are worthy. His life, too, is in a large sense an epitome of theirs, representing as it does all that faith has planted, energy has cultivated, and triumph has reaped, according to his location and surroundings.

Mr. Brown was born in Knox county, Ohio, on May 23, 1846, and is a son of William R. and Sarah (Pond) Brown, the former a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. They were the parents of three children, of whom Vallorous is the only one now living. The father was a farmer and in 1848, when his son, Vallorous, was but two years old, moved from Ohio to Noble county, this state. Three years later he changed his residence to Columbia township, this county, where he remained a number of years, then moved to Thorncreek township, where he died in 1870. The mother afterward married William Ream, but she too has passed away. The son grew to manhood on the farm and secured his education in the public schools. At the age of twenty he began to repay to the state by teaching in the "great university of the people." somewhat of the benefit he had received therefrom, and he continued in this trying but important occupation four years. The next four years he devoted to farming, but at the end of the period he felt impelled to try his hand at mercantile life and he purchased a saw-mill three miles north of Columbia City. This he operated three years, then located in the city and engaged activelv in the manufacture of lumber near the Eel River Railroad, afterward buying another lumber mill and successfully operating both until 1881. He then changed his base to Albion, Indiana, where he was in the lumber trade until January, 1882. At that time he disposed of all his lumber interests and opened a hardware store at Columbia City. The new line of merchandising was not. however, to his taste, and at the end of a year he returned to the lumber business with a mill at Churubusco and one at Mentone. In 1891 he helped to organize the Harper Buggy Company and was chosen its first president, and this office he has filled continuously since his first election to it.

But whatever other interests may engage his attention and employ in a measure his active and versatile mind, his farming industry is now the most extensive one in which he is engaged. He owns six highly improved farms with a total extent of one thousand, six hundred acres, all of which are in an advanced state of cultivation and very productive. On this extensive tract of land he carries on general farming on a large scale, and also makes a specialty of raising and feeding stock, handling the Black Angus strain of cattle and Poland China hogs. A recent shipment from his herd numbered four hundred head of fine cattle of the breed mentioned, two hundred of which went direct to Liverpool. England, and the average weight of these was one thousand five hundred pounds on reaching their destination. In every detail of his business, both farming and raising stock, he is closely attentive to the most exacting requirements, believing that nothing but the best results are worthy of a man's efforts, and he brings to bear on his exertions a judgment ripened and solidified by long experience and discriminating and studious observation. The rank his products have in the markets proves the wisdom of his course.

But Mr. Brown's life has not been one of unbroken peace and quiet industry. In 1863 he enlisted in defense of the Union as a member of the Seventeenth Indiana Infantry. His regiment was soon afterward mounted and assigned to the command of General Wilder as a part of his mounted infantry. Mr. Brown took part in all the raids, skirmishes and battles in whih his regiment engaged, and saw service of the most active kind from his enlistment to the close of the war in [865. At the battle of Selma, Alabama, he was severely wounded by a musket ball which struck him just below the left eye. badly shattering his cheekbone and coming out lower down in his face. He was knocked down by the force of the hall and suffered intense pain with great loss of blood, lint with characteristic nerve he soon remounted and resumed his place in the rank's by (he side of his companions.

Even in a war distinguished for exhibitions of the highest courage and endurance, there could scarcely have been an example surpassing this in determined fortitude. In the keeping of a citizen soldiery composed of men like Mr. Brown, a nation's honor is newer in danger. Mr. Brown later received another severe wound, but this one was in the leg. He keeps the memories of the campaigns in which he took part, the dang'ers he passed, and the companionships that were so endeared by perils, alive by active membership in the Grand Army of the Republic. On March 6, 187 1, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary Baker, and they now have four children, William, Laura, Charles and Daisy. The father has taken thirtytwo degrees in Freemasonry and is a highly esteemed member of the order.

Enlivened with but little of incident or adventure, except during its war period, as the life of Mr. Brown has been, and given up to the commonplace fidelity to duty which makes up the prose and poetry of everyday existence, as it has been, the career of this excellent citizen and most estimable man is yet a very typical one and embodies much of what is presented in the general run of American experience. It is an inspiring illustration of that sturdy and unyielding citizenship and determined manhood which has made this country great at home and respected abroad, and given it to history as the most impressive example of rapid development, unhalting progress and all-conquering ingenuity ami power that the world has ever seen. Mr. Brown recollects when he was a homely-clad urchin toiling from sun to sun on the farm, dreaming, perhaps, of wealth and prominence, yet not even then, most like- ly, widening the sweep of his vision to the horizon of his present fortunes. The land is one of boundless opportunites, and the men who have the capacity to see and use them always get ahead here. Mr. Brown made his own wav in the world and is entitled to the full satisfaction attendant upon the triumph he has won. In politics he is an independent voter.

Frederick Magley

Frederick Magley, one of the substantial and highly respected farmers of Whitley county, was bora in Berne, Switzerland. December 28. 1837, and is the son of Conrad Magley. Conrad Magley came to America, accompanied by his family of nine children, and here was united in marriage to Miss Rosa Pitsbarger. He settled in Licking county, Ohio, where he remained for three years, when he removed to Thorncreek township. Whitley county, and here settled on a tract of wild and unimproved land, comprising sixty acres, which he purchased for three dollars per acre. With a resolute will he at once set to work to clearing the land and soon converted it into fields which brought forth an abundance of harvests. He afterwards moved to Laud and later to Bluffton, Indiana, where his death occurred at an advanced age. The nine children indicated were John. John X. and Jacob, deceased; Frederick: Marv Ann. Elizabeth, Margaret and Fanny, deceased; and Rose- Anna. By his second marriage, he had the following children : Eliza, Henry. Caroline. Emma. Minnie. Clara, Ella, and Celia. of whom only three survive.

Frederick, the only survivor of the nine mentioned, was reared under the parental roof until he became twenty-two years of age, during which time he received a very meager education, and then started out in life on his own account by working out as a farm hand by the month. January 23. 1862. he was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Sumney, who was bora in Holmes county, Ohio, on the 16th of February, 1838, and is the daughter of John and Phoebe ( Bucklow ) Sumney. the former of whom was a native of Pennsylvania and the latter of Ohio. About 1840 they came to Whitley county, where the mother died when Elizabeth was a child of six years. He died at the age of eighty-six. Unto Mr. and Airs. John Sumney were bom the following children : Samuel and William both died young men. William being killed while scouting in the army and Elizabeth. The three children were taken back to Ohio with an uncle, but when Elizabeth was twelve years old her father brought them back to Indiana, she being the housekeeper for some years. But for five years before marriage she made her home with Abraham Pence, an uncle. After Mr. Magley's marriage he rented a farm in Thorncreek township and there toiled and economized until he saved enough money to buy land of his own. In the meantime he purchased a saw mill and from time to time invested in land and today is the owner of one hundred and sixty acres of as fine land as can be found in the country. His farm is well equipped with necessary buildings and other improvements which go to make up a complete homestead and the general appearance of the place indicates the owner to be a man of excellent taste. Mr. and -Mrs. Magjey are the parents of five children : Ida Velona, who died in infancy; Delia, who died at thirty; William, the leading- photographer of Columbia City; Delpha. deceased at twenty-one; Merl. who owns an adjoining farm, married Clara Brumbaugh and they have four children, Kenneth. Hilda, Madge and Wonetta. Although not an aspirant for public office, Mr. Magley has always taken a deep interest in the welfare of his community. His first presidential vote was cast for Stephen A. Douglas, since which time he has supported the Republican party. The entire family are members of the German Baptist church, in which the}- work earnestly and effectively for its welfare and growth.

Dorsey Tagger

Dorsey Jagger, trustee of Thorncreek township and an enterprising and well-to-do farmer, was born October 25. i860, in Lima, Allen county, Ohio, and is a son of Elias and Mariah (Conkleman) Jagger. His father, who was born in Licking county, Ohio, is now, at the age of eighty-nine years, living a quiet and peaceful life in Alger, Ohio, his companion having died in 1894. This union was blessed with the birth of eleven children : Willie and Clarissa, deceased; Almeda, who resides in Ada, Ohio; Clearmor, a resident of Benton county, Indiana; Winfield, of Oklahoma; Sarah, who resides in California; Tobias, in Michigan; Jennie; Mrs. Paling, of Alger, Ohio; Taylor J., deceased, who was a minister in Ohio; Eliza. decea sed ; and Dorsey.

Dorsey Jagger received his education in the public schools, from which he graduated at the age of seventeen, and with the exception of three years which were spent in Lima, Ohio, he remained on the farm with his father until he became of age. It was his desire and intention to become a teacher, but owing to the failure of eyesight he was compelled to discontinue close study and consequently bought a farm in White county. Indiana, where he remained until 1902, when he removed to his present farm of one hundred and sixty acres six miles northeast of Columbia City. He also owns twenty acres in Smith township. Mr. Jagger occupies a conspicuous place among the leading and influential farmers of his community. He is at present trustee of Thorncreek township and discharges his duties to the entire satisfaction of the community.

At the age of twenty Mr. Jagger chose a life companion in the person of Miss Delilah Crawford, a daughter of Samuel and Anna (Clapper) Crawford, and to this union were born fourteen children : Carrie Maud, the wife of Tom Cogger, a teacher in White county; Viola May, wife of Harry Reynolds, of this county; Lizzie, a teacher in Thorncreek ; Charles ; Nellie Eva ; Grover E. ; Lena C. ; Jennie B. ; Hazel ; Cecil Ray ; Mabel Agnes ; John Dewey ; Frederick Earl, and Henry Lawrence. Mr. Jagger and his wife are members of the Methodist church. Mr. Jagger lends his support to the Democratic party and at all times takes a deep interest in the political and social interests of the community. The entire family occupies a prominent place in the circle in which they move and are well liked bv all.

Daniel Pressler

Among the stream of emigrants pouring into northeastern Indiana in 1846 were a man and wife and several small children, all loaded in one of the "schooner" wagons so common in those days of rude transportation. The driver of the outfit was John Pressler, then a young man seeking his fortune in a contest with the western wilderness. A native of Pennsylvania he had emigrated to Fairfield county, Ohio, where he met and married Mariah Egolph, who proved a good and loyal wife until her death in 1855. It was the 10th of October that the little caravan arrived in Whitley county and shortly thereafter the head of the household bought one hundred and sixty acres of land in Thorncreek township. It was wild and woody and many a weary blow and hard day's work were necessary to whip it into shape for cultivation. It was eventually cleared and grubbed out, however, as the result of that energy for which the pioneers were noted and this place is now one of the thrifty farms of Whitley county. By his first marriage John Pressler had thirteen children : The first died in infancy, unnamed ; Valentine. John and Rachel, deceased; Henry C, a resident of Albion, Indiana ; Daniel ; Adam, of Rockford, Illinois ; Mariah, wife of Henry Buss, of Noble county ; Sarah, wife of Samuel Forker, of Noble county ; Joseph, resident of Whitley county ; David, of Albion ; Lydia, deceased ; an infant, who died unnamed. By a second marriage with Lydia Humbarger, John Pressler had three children : Emanuel, in Tipton county. Indiana; Manda, the second, resides in Fort Wavne. and William is a resident of Columbia City. The father retired from active business many years ago and lived in Columbia City until his death in 1884 in his eightieth year.

Daniel Pressler was born in Fairfield county, Ohio, October 23, 1838, and was one of the small lads who peeped out of the wagon in that October day, when his parents first crossed the line into Indiana. As he grew up he helped in the hard task of clearing up the new farm and remained until his work was interrupted by the clash of arms that preluded the Civil war. August 12. 1862, he enlisted at Columbia City in Company K, Eighty-eighth Regiment, Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served with this command until his discharge June 15. 1865. He was in the battles of Perryville, Kentucky, Stone River, Tennessee, and many skirmishes. Much of his sendee was in the hospital and in connection with the commissary. After returning home he resumed farming in Thorncreek township, but in 1868 concluded to try his fortunes in Kansas. Not liking the prospects there he returned after - une year's residence and bought the forty acres of land on which he has since resided. It was all in woods when it came into his possession, but he has cleared and cultivated it in such a way as to make a valuable piece of property as well as a good home. Mr. Pressler is a Democrat and has served as road supervisor and constable of Thorncreek township. February 10. 1861, he married Margaret A. Charles, a native of Richland county, Ohio, whose parents, Alexander F. and Elizabeth (McCune) Charles, came to Whitley county in the same year that witnessed the advent of the Presslers. Mrs.

Pressler's brother and sisters were Jane, Mary and Frank Charles. Air. and Mrs. i 'ressler have had nine children : Albert and Willie died in infancy; Franklin, deceased in childhood: Korah, who remains with his parents; Nora, the wife of John W. Wolf, of Noble township, and has three children, Ray, Lesco and Hobert ; Cameron, married Frances Bolsby and resides in Etna township; Arthur and Guy, at home; and Grace, deceased in childhood. Mr. Pressler is a member of English post. Grand Army of the Republic, at Etna.

Simox J. Peabody

Honored alike by rich and poor, old and young, the lofty and the lowly, and fully deserving the universal esteem in which he is held. S. J. Peabody, of Columbia City, who has for more than a generation of human life been one of the leading business men in this part of the state, ranks among Whitley county's most useful, most worthy and most representative citizens. And assuredly not the least agreeable or valuable feature of his life story is the fact that he has been the architect of his own fortunes, and has built them up. in all their elements, without favoring circumstances or help from any outside source. It is greatly to his credit and runs like a veritable thread of gold through his record that he has during all the active vears of his life been most energetic and public spirited in the matter of public improvements and advancement for the locality of his home, and ever earnest and wisely diligent in promoting the welfare, personal and general, of his fellowmen.

Mr. Peabody is a native of this state and was born in Noble county on September 29, 1 85 1. He is a son of John/L. and Hannah ( Ayers) Peabody, natives of Pompton, New Jersey. The father grew to manhood in his native place and there learned his trade as a machinist, serving an apprenticeship of seven years and becoming very expert in making surveyors' and other mathematical instruments. He also became a practical surveyor, and this made him a man of great usefulness in the new country to which his desire and his destiny led him. enabling him to do his own surveying there and render a similar service to his neighbors at a time when acquirements such ashis were rare in the region. He was married in New York to Miss Hannah Ayers, like himself a native of Pompton, Xew Jersey, and a daughter of Enos and Jane (Debow) Ayers, the father of English and the mother of German ancestry, but the families of both long domesticated in Xew Jersey, their American progenitors having been pioneers in the state. About 1819 the Ayers family moved to Huron county, Ohio. The country was heavily timbered and to clear it required the united and arduous efforts <>\ every available force. Perseverance < >vercame every obstacle and in time the wild land was transformed into an excellent farm, on which Mr. Ayers lived until his death, soon after which event the widow and family returned to their old home in Xew Jersey.

After his marriage John F. Peabody lived in the city of New York until 1841. when he took up his residence in Huron count}-. Ohio. Two years later he removed his family and effects to Noble count)'. Indiana, where he was one of the earlv set- tiers and where he engaged in farming until the fall of 185 1. He then changed his base of operations to Areola, Allen county, and his occupation to that of lumber merchant, although still farming to some extent, carrying on the two industries together until his death on September 13, 1865, when he was at the age of fifty-three years. His widow still survives at the age of eightyseven years. Of their eleven children only two are living, Simon J., of Columbia City, and J. B., of North Manchester, in this state.

Simon J. Peabody was reared to habits of useful industry in the household and business of his father and obtained his education in the public schools near his home. At the age of fifteen he began the battle of life for himself, armed only with the capital nature had given him, a clear head, a strong physique, an unyielding determination and a ready will for any useful employment that might present itself. He had acquired a considerable knowledge of the work of sawing lumber in his father's mill and the first position he held for himself was as engineer and head sawyer in a sawmill. Saving his earnings, he was in an unusually short period able to start a business of his own, which he did by establishing a shingle factory at Areola in 1869, he being then but eighteen years of age. He continued his operations in that establishment two years and in 1871 moved to Taylor, Whitley county, where he erected a sawmill. After about ten years he took up his residence at Columbia City and gave his attention wholly to the lumber trade in a comprehensive and general way. His success has been great from the start, for he has conducted his business with a high order of capacity involving great foresight, energy and breadth of view, and has made every circumstance minister to his advantage. His mill in Columbia City is running continuously the year round and furnishes employment to a large number of men. Mr. Peabody is connected also with a large sawmill at Lafontaine. another at Denver and one at Rochester, Indiana. All these are vigorously managed and kept at their full capacity all the time. To measure the extent and volume of their benefaction to mankind it would be necessary to estimate the homes they have made comfortable and happy, the domestic shrines they have warmed and brightened, the hearts of parents they have rendered light and cheerful, the faces of childhood they have wreathed in beaming smiles and the intellectual and moral forces they have evoked and put in motion. But even then the sum of their good would be left to conjecture, as no calculation could compass it all for statement in cold figures.

Mr. Peabody has prospered almost phenomenally and is one of the most substantial men in the county. He was at one time a stockholder in the Michigna Peninsular ( ar Company, of Detroit, but some few years ag'o withdrew from that industry. He owns considerable real estate of value in the city and county, among his possessions being- the celebrated Wilkeswood stock farm, comprising snine hundred acres of first-rate land. He was formerly the owner of the renowned stallion Wilkeswood. which he purchased in Kentucky in 1886 and sold in 1893 for the sum of $10,000. By the operation of his farm and the liberal policy pursued he has clone much to elevate the standard of live stock, especially horses, in this part of the state. In fact, it may be truthfully said of him that he has touched nothing that he has not improved.

In 1906 Mr. Peabody converted his Columbia City enterprises, consisting of a planing mill, a pine lumber trade and a sawmill, into a stock company, taking in as shareholders some of his oldest employes and thus admitting them to an interest in the business they had helped to build up.. In addition to the mills and lumber yards already mentioned, this gentleman of great business grasp and comprehensiveness is connected with others. He is president of the Peabody Lumber Company at Lafontaine, which operates a large mill there, and is interested in mills at Denver and Rochester in association with W. F. Kinsley. He is also vice-president of the Columbia City National Bank and of the Provident Trust Company, of the same place, and president of the Whitley County Telephone Company. On his farm he raises fine grades of cattle and hogs.

At present he exercises only a supervision over his many interests, leaving their active management and the trying work incident thereto to those of his old and trusted employes who have become stockholders in the corporation, in which, however, he still holds the controlling interest. He has been a good friend to all his working men, helping- them to homes on easy terms and taking their interests under consideration along with his own during the whole of his business career. His business is one of the most extensive in northern Indiana and its profits are commensurate with its magnitude: yet

Mr. Peabody is one of those rare men who in making money has outgrown the love of it, seeing in it only the means of helping to lighten the burdens and augment the happiness of his_kind. His private benevolence is extensive but unostentatious and his support of public improvements is generous, active and immediate when he approves of them.

But the busy life here briefly chronicled has not been without the lighter tints to relieve its somber hue. The golden thread of sentiment has run brightly through its woof and twice has its subject bowed gracefully beneath the flowery yoke of Eros. Mr. Peabody was first married on May 22, 1875, being united then with Miss Hannah B. Swift, a native of Marion, Massachusetts, and a lineal descendant of Peregrine White, the first white child bom in this country after the arrival of the Mayflower at Plymouth Rock. Of this marriage one child was born, a daughter named Genevieve, who died on February 20, 1879, the mother passing away a few days later. On October 9, 1882, the father married as his second wife Miss Mary E. Tobey, a native of Lagrange, Indiana, and a daughter of Rev. Reuben Tobey, of that city, who was for more than a quarter of a century a member of the Northern Indiana Conference of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is now deceased.

Air. Peabody's unvarying business policy through life has been to meet all financial obligations at the hour of their maturity; his demeanor toward his employes has been to recognize merit by promotion at the proper time. In his citizenship he has been and is elevated and elevating; and in all the relations of life he has given to the community in which he lives an example that is worthy of all emulation and a service that is beyond price.

Henry W. Miller

The gentleman whose name heads this sketch is a native of Clark county, Ohio, where his birth occurred June 24, 1849, being the son of Peter and Sarah (Snyder) Miller, both parents of German lineage. Mr. Miller's paternal grandparents, Adam and Mary Miller, came to America from Germany in an early day and settled in York county, Pennsylvania, where they reared their family and spent the remainder of their lives. In his native country Adam learned the trades of linen weaving and tailoring, and followed the latter after becoming a citizen of the United States, and for a number of years ran a shop in Pennsylvania, where he earned wide repute as a skillful workman. His wife belonged to an old and wealthy aristocratic family in the land of her birth, but for marrying beneath her social status she was disinherited and after coming to America lost all trace of her relations in the Fatherland. She bore her husband seven children, lived an honorable life as a wife and mother and died at an advanced age a number of years ago in Pennsylvania. Peter Miller was reared and educated in the above state and when a young man learned the cooper's trade, which he followed for a few years in his home county, after which he spent considerable time working as a journeyman in various towns in Pennsylvania, finally making his way to Dayton, Ohio, where he worked at his chosen calling until 1859, when he purchased a farm near the city of Springfield and turned his attention to the cultivation of the soil. After remaining there until 1864 he disposed of his land and moving to Whitley county, bought a farm of two hundred and seventeen acres in Thorncreek township, which was partially improved and which has been in possession of the family ever since, being owned at this time by his son, whose name appears at the head of this article. In the course of a few years Mr. Miller cleared and reduced the greater part of this land to cultivation. He soon took high rank as an industrious, frugal farmer and practical business man, introducing a series of substantial improvements which made his place one of the best and most desirable rural homes in the township. The present residence, erected in 1872, was one of the most pretentious homes in the county. He was one of the first men in his neighborhood to demonstrate the efficiency and value of systematic drainage, his initial efforts in reclaiming waste land consisting of a large number of ditches, into which were placed long covered wooden troughs and barrels and then filled to the original level. In due time this wooden material decayed, but not until the purposes of the drainage were achieved and a goodly number of acres originally covered with water and deemed useless for tillage reclaimed and rendered exceedingly productive and valuable for farming. Mr. Miller's career was a practical exemplification of well applied industry and he lived long enough to enjoy the results of persevering toil and systematic management, dying' in 1887, his wife preceding him to die other world by seven years. They were seventy-five and seventy, respectively. They were members of the Lutheran church, lived consistent Christian lives and were much esteemed by the large circle of neighbors and friends with whom they were wont to associate. The following" are the names of their five children : Cornelius, who died at about sixty-six, leaving three children, one of his sons, William, being prominent in railroad circles, and holding at this time the position of traveling auditor with one of the important railway lines centering in the city of Detroit; John A., who died at twentyone ; Man', who is the wife of William Miller, a farmer of Richland township, Whitley county; Samuel, a retired farmer and exsoldier, who died in December, 1906, in Columbia City, aged sixty-two, and Henry W. The early life of Henry W. Miller, devoid of striking event, was spent amid the stirring scenes of the farm and as soon as old enough his services were demanded in the fields, where in due time he learned the lessons of industry and thrift, which lie at the foundation of his subsequent career of usefulness as an enterprising and progressive tiller of the soil. In the public schools, which he attended from two to three months of the year, he obtained a practical knowledge of the common branches and later rented his father's farm, which he continued to cultivate for a share of the proceeds for a period df five years, when he purchased one hundred and seventeen acres of the homestead. This he cultivated in connection with the home farm and in the meantime began dealing quite extensively in live stock, in addition to which he also conducted a successful dairy business. Mr. Miller's career in all of his undertakings has been eminently satisfactory, being at this time one of the leading agriculturists and stockmen of \\ hitley county, owning a splendid farm of four hundred and sixty-two acres, including the homestead, of which three hundred and fifty are in cultivation, his buildings of all kinds being modern, commodious and convenient and comparing favorably with the finest improvements of the kind, not only in the county, but in the northern part of the state. He gives personal attention to his extensive agricultural interests, and in all that constitutes a typical American fanner of the times he is easily the peer of any of his fellow citizens similarly engag'ed, being a careful student of agricultural science, familiar with the latest improvements in implements and machinery, and by proper fertilizing and judicious rotation, his success has been commensurate with the intelligence and judgment displayed in the management of his estate, while his abundant harvests and liberal income have made him independent and won for him a conspicuous place among the financially solid and well-to-do men of the county.

Mr. Miller was married in September, 1875, to Miss Mary Spears, of Whitley county, who died within a few days after presenting him with twin children. Charles H. and Mary Jane, the former now engaged in business in Columbia City, the latter the wife of Frank Lusk, of Ouincy. Michigan. October 28, 1878, Mr. Miller was married to Miss Elizabeth Zellers, also of this county, the union being blessed with seven children: Alma R., wife of Ralph Coli, of Columbus Grove. Ohio; Orb L., deceased;

Edward W.; Delia C. ; Dora; Ruth, deceased ; Josie. Mr. Miller has always manifested a keen interest in public matters and as a pronounced Democrat of the Jeffersonian school has rendered valuable service to his party, in recognition of which he was elected in 1892 as county commissioner, serving three years. The Methodist Episcopal church holds his religious creed and for a number of years he has been a faithful member of the same and a liberal contributor to its various lines of work, his wife belonging to the congregation with which he is identified and, like him, zealous in the discharge of her duties as an humble and devout disciple of the Nazarene.

Charles W. Hively

This name has long been familiar in Whitley county by reason of the fact that the founder of the family was among the early settlers and left numerous descendants. John Hively, who was a native of Licking county, Ohio, came to Indiana in what the pioneer historians call an "earl}' day" and entered one hundred and sixty acres of government land in Thorncreek township and lived on the same until his death, which occurred at the early age of thirty-three. He married^ Elizabeth, daughter of Nathaniel Gradless, a soldier of the war of 18 12 and one of the first settlers of Whitley county. By this union there was bom five children : Irvin, who died during the war, while a soldier of the Union army ; Henry Clay, a resident of Kansas; Charles W. ; Matthew H., of Fort Wayne, and Noah, also a resident of Thorncreek township. After her husband's death Mrs. Hively married Peter Shriner, one of the county's early settlers, by whom she had four children : Mary, widow of Aaron Bair, a resident of Thorncreek township ; John, of Columbia City ; Lucinda, deceased wife of Andrew Garty, and Sarah Elizabeth, who died in childhood. The parents were members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Charles W. Hively, third child of his mother's first marriage, was born November 15, 1846, and lived with his step-father until he became of age. Receiving forty acres of his father's original homestead he lived on and farmed the same until 1876, when he bought the ninety acres which constitutes his present farm and has been his home during the intervening years. November 6, 1868, he married Clara, daughter of Abraham Pence, who died after bearing him four children: Webster, a fanner, of Thorncreek township; Cora E., wife of Albert Ansbaugh, of Smith township ; Leomar died at seven years and one who died in infancy. Mr. Hively 's second marriage was to Delia, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Pence) Vanouten, a religious and accomplished woman, who proved a very congenial companion to her husband. She was for twenty years a licensed preacher of the United Brethren church and with the assistance of Mr. Hively did much evangelistic work. She died March 26, 1902. She served as pastor of various churches including' her home church. Her evangelistic work, assisted by her husband, covered much of St. Joseph conference with satisfactory success. She is remembered as a fluent and able pulpit speaker which, supported by deep religious faith and personal experience, made her an earnest and acceptable worker in. the Master's cause. In her last years poor health compelled retirement from more active duty but she never faltered in her one trust, dying with a blessed hope and confidence.

They had one daughter, Frances E., who remains at home with her father. Mr. Hively contracted a third marriage with Ella, daughter of Solomon Miller, one of the county's old settlers. Both were members of the United Brethren church and for twentysix years Mr. Hively has been active in religious work, especially in connection with Sunday school work. In politics he acts with the Prohibition party, as his principles make him an uncompromising opponent of the liquor traffic.

George W. Miller

Letters were not numerous and neighbors were "far between" when in 1846 Joseph and Elizabeth Miller joined the ranks of pioneer farmers then struggling with the swamps and tall timber of Thorncreek township. He was a Virginian who, some years previous had emigrated to Perry county, Ohio, but later concluded that he could do better in the new state of Indiana. He bought a tract of land and put in many years of hard labor in its improvement and cultivation, but it is now valuable property and still owned by his descendants. This worthy couple were members of the Lutheran church, quiet and unobtrusive people who passed uneventful lives and finally passed away at their home in Thorncreek township. He died September 22, 1850.

She, bom in Pennsylvania, died January, 1870. They had three children. John died in Thorncreek in 1896, aged seventy-one. Jonathan died at thirty and Elizabeth died a maiden lady in 1876, aged fifty-three. Jonathan was at one time surveyor of Whitley county, and did much work in that line. John the eldest son born September 29, 1825, was a young man when he came with his parents to Whitley county. He had attended the common schools as well as an academy in Ohio and was unusually well educated for that day. He taught school a number of years in Whitley and Noble counties, farming between times, and in 1855 being- licensed as a preacher by the Lutheran church he devoted much of his time to religious work until his death August 5, 1896. For several years he had charge of various churches in Whitley, Noble and Huntington counties. He once held a debate with Rev. Appleton of the Christian church which attracted a good deal of local attention. He was liberal in his views but never hesitated to advance his views. He often spoke on the liquor question. In early manhood he married Catherine Hively, who proved a devoted wife and at present lives on the old farm inherited by her husband from his father. They had five children, of whom two died in infancy. The living are George W., John F., a carpenter of Fort Wayne, and Calvin L., a fanner of Marshall county, Indiana.

George W. Miller, eldest of the family, was born in Whitley county on the Thorncreek homestead, January 10, 1855. He remained at home with his father and helped in the farming until he reached early manhood. Meantime he had picked up a fair education by attendance at the schools of

Thomcreek township. The homestead having descended to his father and the latter being- busy most of his time in church work, Mr. Miller had charge of the place several years. Finally he bought the seventy acres on which he now lives, which he has greatly improved by industry and good management. He erected an eight-room house, built in modern style, with all the conveniences, has put up a good barn and other outbuildings, and altogether has a comfortable home for himself and family. October 9, 1881, Mr. Miller was married to Mary Ann, daughter of Leonard and Ellen (Brumbaugh) Hyre, natives of Ohio, who became earl)' settlers in Smith township, Whitley county. The father who survives his wife is living in Columbia City. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have had four children : Melvin R., who married Juda Zumbrum and is a farmer in Smith township; Arnie M. and Retha F., still at home, and Mildred, who died in infancy. Mr. Miller is a Republican in politics and a member of the Lutheran church. His wife is a German Baptist in religious belief.

Howard Simmon

This pioneer fanner is pleasantly situated in Thorncreek township, where he is passing the golden sunset of an honorable and successful life surrounded by friends and in the enjoyment of the comforts of a good home. He was born in Adams county. Pennsylvania, November 9, 1828, and is the son of John and Susan (Brame) Simmon, both natives of Pennsylvania.

In 1830 they moved to Starke county. Ohio, where they engaged in farming, although by trade he was a miller. They were industrious and successful and contributed their full share in building up all public enterprises for the development of the country and betterment of mankind. The mother departed this life in 1850 in Carroll county, Ohio, and in 185 1 he moved to Buchanan county, where he remained until his death when past seventy. They were members of the German Lutheran Church. Ten children were born to this union, namely : Leah, Sarah, Moses. John, Elizabeth, Henry, all six deceased, Howard, Enoch, living in St. Joseph county, Indiana, George, living at Lakeville in Marshall county, and William deceased.

Howard remained at home with his parents until he was twenty years of age, receiving subscription school advantages during the winter months. He worked as a farm laborer and in the woods until about 1 86 1, when he came to Whitley county and purchased thirty-two acres in Thorncreek township, where he remained about one vear. selling the farm and moving to Etna township, where he rented a farm and there lived about one year, then moving to Kosciusko county, where he bought forty acres, when he made his final move locating on the farm of his father-in-law, David Baer, where he has continued to live to the present. September 18, 1853. he was married to Alary, daughter of David and Martha Baer, who was born in Starke county. Ohio, October 14. 1834. Mr. and Mrs. Baer were natives of Pennsylvania, but came to Starke county, Ohio, in an early day, where they remained, until 1853. when they came to

Whitley county anil settled on the farm now owned and occupied by Mr. Simmon. Here they remained until both died, the wife's death occurring' in 1871, and that of the husband in [876. They were devoted members of the Mennonite church, though no society of that denomination existed near them. Seven children were born to them: Moses. Andrew, David, Martha, Susan, Sarah, and Mar)-, who is the sole survivor.

Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Simmon, Andrew, deceased in infancy, Vallona, living at home, William and Emma Jane, both deceased. Samuel, married to Joan Plummer, living in Gratiot county, Michigan, George, who married Carrie Snyder and lives at Mancelona, Michigan, Nettie, wife of Levi Rover. of Marion, Indiana. All the remainder died in infancy. The family enjoys membership in the Thorncreek Christian church, giving it consistent service and generous support. Mr. Simmon is a Republican in politics, believing that party advocates the principles best adapted to the advancement of the country. The Baer farm contained one hundred and seventy acres, of which Mr. Simmon owns seventy acres, most of which he has converted from its primitive condition.

James M. Leaman

James M. Leaman, a successful and enterprising farmer of Whitley county, was born on the farm where he now lives July 22, [865, and is the son of Daniel and Catherine (Quinn) Leaman. Daniel's father was Samuel Leaman, who came to Indiana in 1830 and purchased a tract of wild land.

The country at this time was thickly inhabited with many wild animals, the greater number being wolves and deer. He departed this life at an advanced age, and was the father of six children, all of whom are now deceased. Daniel Leaman accompanied his father to Indiana when a lad of twelve and was reared to maturity on a farm. In 1854 he purchased seventy-nine acres of land, which he cleared and otherwise developed, and in due time he became a thrifty farmer and a citizen whom all his neighbors and friends were pleased to honor and respect. His death occurred in 1899. Catherine (Quinn) Leaman. mother of James M.. was born in Starke county. Ohio. Her death took place in 1897. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Leaman were the parents of six children : John, who died in infancy; Alonzo, who resides in Thorncreek township; Rozella, who died in infancy; James M.. Charles, deceased: and. Lewis, who is living in Fort Wayne.

The early life of James M. Leaman was spent amid the stirring scenes of country life and he grew up under the nigged but wholesome discipline of the farm. and. while still a young man, became accustomed to the various duties which such an experience entails. At the proper age he entered the district schools and during the summer months devoted his time and energy to the operation of the farm. October 21, 1888, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Leaman and Miss Valona Staples, who was born in Thorncreek township March 10, 1870. the daughter of James and Elizabeth (King) Staples. After his marriage James M. rented his farm and removed to Columbia City, where he lived for five years, when he again removed to a farm located near his father's place. After living there five years he purchased the old homestead upon the settlement of the estate. Being familiar with the quality of soils and their adaptability to the different grains and vegetables grown in this latitude, he is seldom mistaken in the matter of crops and as a rule he realizes liberal returns from the time and labor expended on his fields. In brief he is a model farmer and has done much to advance the standard of successful tillage in his part of the country. On his place is a neat and substantial house standing on an eminence where a fine view is had of the surrounding country with its many fine homes, valleys, hills and lakes, a large and commodious- barn, and other necessary buildings. Mr. and Mrs. Leaman have had nine children : Earl. Chloe, Effie, Grace, Vonnie, Daniel, Alva and Clarence, and one who died in infancy. - In politics Mr. Leaman is an earnest advocate of the Democratic party, but has never manifested an iota of political ambition in the seeking of official preferment. He has served at different times as road supervisor and discharged his duties worthily and well. He also rents land and deals some in timber. Mrs. Leaman is a member of the United Brethren church.

Jonathan Monroe Hartmax

A well-known and prosperous farmer of Richland township, living on the Larwill and Columbia City pike, was born in Shelby county, Ohio, March 9, 1849, and is the son of Peter and Sarah (Swander) Hartman, both natives of Ohio. Thev came to Indiana in 1853, and settled in Columbia township. They bought one hundred and sixty acres of land one mile south of Columbia City in the native forest and entered uix.ii a task that would stagger the young man of today, that of making a home and farm where the sound of the ax had never been heard. The}' were equal to the emergency, and by industry and economy were soon comfortable and prosperous. They enjoyed membership in the Lutheran church, and were always liberal in public enterprises and whatever was for the betterment of mankind. The death of the wife occurred about 1857, and was followed by the husband in 1864. Nine children were born to them, namely : The first dying in infancy ; Benjamin, deceased; George, living in Kosciusko county ; Jonathan Monroe ; Catherine, wife of John Rittenhouse, living in Thorncreek township, Whitley county : Sarah and Florence, twins. Sarah is the wife of Thomas Roberts, living in Shelby county, Ohio. Florence is the wife of Andrew Roberts, brotherof Thomas, of the same county. Eva Savilla, wife of John Fey, who also resides in Shelby county, Ohio; Lewis living in Columbia township. The old homestead is now known as the George Roberts farm. At his father's death Jonathan M. returned to Ohio, and worked a few years at farm work, attending school only in winter seasons, after which he came back to the old home and worked several years by the month. December 20, 1878. he was united in marriage to Frances A., daughter of James and Barbara (Nolt) Myers, and who was born March 4, 1855. in Columbia township, and granddaughter of Jonas Nolt, who owned over two thousand acres of land. Mr. and Airs. .Myers were natives of Pennsylvania, and came to Indiana, the young people being married here. But the widow still lives in Columbia township, on the farm carved from her father's estate. They were the parents of four children : Mary, living at home with her mother; Frances A., Amos and John, each having part of the old home farm.

Soon after the marriage of Jonathan M. and wife they moved to their present farm of one hundred and eighty-three acres, now one of the most valuable and desirable in the county, being well drained and fenced, with modern house and barn and all the conveniences for pleasant, profitable farming. It was but the beginning of a new farm with a few acres cleared. He now has about sixty acres in cultivation, the remainder devoted to pasture. Mrs. Hartman also owns another small farm which is operated in connection. Eight children were born to them : Mary Ellen, died at twenty-two; Nora, Lloyd, Pearl, Russel and Viola, all living at home, and two that died in infancy.

In politics Mr. Hartman believes in the principles of the Republican party, but does not aspire to public position. The family enjoys the esteem of a large circle of friends and acquaintances.

Henry Schrader

The gentleman whose name introduces tliis article is a well known and highly esteemed citizen of Jefferson township and as a farmer ranks among the leading men of his calling in the county of Whitley. The Schraders are of German lineage, but have been represented in the United States, coming to this country about the year 1825 and settling in Pennsylvania, where the subject's grandfather, John Schrader, spent the remainder of his life. Martin Schrader, father of the subject, was born in Bavaria, Germany, in 1808, and at the age of thirteen accompanied his parents to America locating with the family in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he remained until he removed in 1845 to Whitley county, Indiana. On coming to this state Mr. Schrader engaged in merchandising at Columbia City, opening one of the first stores in the town and in addition to selling goods, did considerable work as a builder, having learned carpentry when a young man. After a residence of three years at the above place he discontinued both lines of business, disposed of his stock and moving to a farm devoted the remainder of his life to the pursuit of agriculture, dying in the year 1863. He married in Pennsylvania Miss Fannie Kuhn, who became the mother of sixteen children only seven of whom survive. Martin Schrader was a man of ripe judgment and sound business capacity, broad minded and liberal in his views, and manifested a lively interest in public matters. He was a Republican in politics, but would never accept office at the hands of his fellow citizens, and in material affairs was quite successful, being the possessor of a handsome competence at the time of his death.

Henry Schrader, the direct subject of this review, is a native of Whitley county, born on the 8th day of May, 185 1. In common with the majority of country boys, his- early life was devoted to the labor on the farm varied in winter seasons by attending the district schools, and while still young he learned the valuable lessons of industry, thrift and self-reliance, which has marked influence in directing and controlling his subsequent career as an enterprising and public spirited citizen. In 1876 Mr. Schrader entered the marriage relation with Miss Katie E. Page, daughter of R. M. and Philuria (Lighttizer) Page, who has proven a helpmate as well as a loving and affectionate wife and mother presiding over her husband's household with becoming grace, and co-operating heartily with him in all of his efforts and contributing much to the success which he has achieved. She died in 1890.